The Grass Is Greener On The Other Side Of the Fence
by Tiresia
Summary: Luna suspects something is up with the emerald eyed Gryffindor, in fact she's certain of that. However, when she confronts him, she gets a story she hardly could have expected. When a good friend's grief threatens to make her lose him forever, in a way he could never come back, Luna makes to prevent that from happening.


**AN:** Obviously I don't own Harry Potter, you dolts. Anyways, this fic is a bit of a mix of few things, so fair warning: Trans!Harry, Depressed!Harry, Fem!Harry

The dark haired young man blinked rapidly at the petite blonde in front of him, here was someone he didn't personally recognize and she looked up at him with a look of anger. Mentally running through the past few days, since that day, he couldn't think of anything he'd done to personally attack the girl in front of him. Certainly, he wouldn't have hesitated but his present circumstances left much to be desired in terms of using his tongue adequately. Not to mention if someone had told him this would be happening, well last year he would have body bound them and hung them from the rafters in nothing but their knickers. Mentally filing the idea for later use, he gave her a look of confusion, "Listen blondie, I have no idea what I did to offend you, but I'm sorry?" He paused, "Of course, telling me what I've done would help immensely."

The girl gave him a scathing look and something told him that it was not an expression that had ever crossed her face before, a nice face too. She laughed airily, though the tone made it sound like she was getting ready to put him under the Cruciatus or some other nefarious curse, Damned bloody Gryff, he muttered to himself. "You aren't Harry," the girl finally spoke.

"What? Did someone spike your pumpkin juice with a Mental Inadequacy Potion?" the boy answered, mentally yelling a string of curses to himself. _Bloody idiot POTTER,_ _thought even_ I _could imitate him without suspicion._ Though the boy was doing a fair job of copying him, maybe the story about him possibly doing well in Slytherin wasn't complete codswallop after all. Inwardly groaning he waited for her to respond.

"If you were Harry, that'd be a valid excuse for how you've been acting," the girl answered, "But Harry isn't so direct or rude with his insults, which is more than I can say about you, Malfoy." Expecting a smug look, he was more surprised when she just stared at him. Running through every action he had made that day, coming up short he blinked at her again. He was fairly certain he had all of Potter's mannerisms down as exactly as he could, not surprising since he spent so much time watching and pestering his former rival. He started to open his mouth but was interrupted, "Plus I can see, Harry's aura doesn't look anything like yours does."

"What do you want?" he finally asked.

"Harry," she answered firmly.

"...Fine, I'll go get the bloody idiot."

Draco left the room, rubbing his face with his hands. Not even a week in, and here they were dealing with one of the most obvious and anticipated problems of this stupid switch. Why Potter had chosen him, well, it seemed they had one thing in common. Neither of them liked the way they were now being treated by their peers and even the Professors. Harry hated the attention and every minute of it, something Draco had managed to understand by likening it to his treatment, but still, he should be lavishing in the praise and attention. Oh sure, he didn't particularly like the boy but as annoying as it was, he damned well deserved it all now. Draco's mother had said, and oddly his father admitted to wholeheartedly agreeing, that not only was it thanks to Harry they weren't in prison or dead, but their views were narrow and short sighted.

Draco had been nearly knocked off his feet, sure he agreed they had been idiots but to admit it was not the Malfoy way. Draco had plenty to thank Harry for, and the main reason he had agreed to the switch was his Life Debt. Such a thing didn't happen often, nor was it recognized by magic in every case, so Draco was far from surprised when Harry had admitted he knew nothing. Potter himself had owed his mother one, but that had been cleared up completely and unknowingly by Harry himself. Though it had taken a bit, he had finally told Harry they were distantly related, through Potter's paternal grandparents. The reaction had been completely different from what he had expected, Potter had vibrantly lit up and the jade color of his eyes sparkled emerald for the first time in awhile.

For the time being, while Harry posed as him, the boy was exchanging as many letters with Draco's mother as the boy himself did. Draco huffed out loud, Malfoys were not prone to thinking so much, but inner monologuing was a flaw he was far from proud of. After he had told Harry this, and they started the switch, Draco had sat down alone for awhile and thought about what would have happened, how he would have felt, if his parents had actually gone to Azkaban or died. After that, he determined he couldn't hate Potter. He didn't pity him either, no, he felt nothing but sympathy.

Grabbing his hair, Draco finally entered the library and found the silver-haired boy pretending to be him. Potter was reading something, quite intensely. "Oi, bookworm." Harry looked up, ready to spit out one of Draco's trademarked, literally at that, sarcastic insults but caught himself mid-sneer. Blinking he tilted his head.

"Yes, Mal-Potter?" Harry asked.

Another sigh. "Some blonde girl, probably Ravenclaw if the blue on her uniform isn't something for fun," Draco internally thought of Pansy's skirt, charmed to flash him her panties at every opportunity. The pug-faced girl with a personality to rival that of even the worst and most disgusting Death Eaters had been trying to hook up with him for years. Struggling to not vomit at the mental image he continued, "wants to see _you_ ," he emphasized the latter part.

"...Luna?" Harry muttered, a confused expression crossing his current face. _It honestly doesn't fit my features_ , Draco thought as the urge to slap the boy grew.

"Yes, well, whatever her name is, she wants to see you. She's a few classrooms away, I left a textbook in front of it so you know which," Harry nodded in affirmation and grabbed his bag. As the boy moved towards the door, Draco called out, "be careful, I don't want my face ruined."

Harry rolled his eyes and disappeared from the library, leaving Draco alone. Sinking into a chair, he rubbed his face again. Whatever happened between those two, he honestly didn't want to care. However, it involved Draco's reputation so he couldn't help but feel worried. _Ugh, what if they snog? That lunatic,_ Draco let out a snicker, _girl could be planning anything._

As Draco's inner musings inside the library continued, Harry had quickly arrived at the room. Aside from Luna herself, it was relatively empty. Harry stared at her and she stared back, the two remaining oddly silent for some time. "Why didn't you tell me?" Luna's voice sounded… hurt, to Harry's surprise.

"I didn't think I honestly mattered to you," Harry answered, "I don't feel like outside of being The-Boy-Who-Lived or The-Champion-of-the-Light or The-Man-Who-Won, that I actually matter to anyone…" Harry answered, struggling to hold himself together as he finally admitted to the pressure that had only increased after the War. Luna opened her mouth to speak, but Harry finally bubbled over and kept talking. "I went from the most hated person by anyone I knew, and the least well known, to the most 'loved' and appreciated in just few days. I learned that my parents loved me, that someone had actually loved me, but then they were gone! Then when I met Sirius and he showed genuine interest in what I was like, he even guessed I was hiding something! THEN HE WAS GONE!" Harry was nearly crying as he yelled, "All the fame, all of it, I would trade in an instant just to be loved, Luna. So many people act like they know me, everyone does it. Hermione doesn't do it as much, but she does, and so does Ron! Everyone around me thinks I'm this great hero! I'M NOT! I don't like myself, I HATE myself, I hate being Harry Potter, I hate having anything to do with the War! I hate that because I lost all the people who loved _me_ I became _this!_ Why-" he finally choked and started crying. Luna blinked as the boy practically fell down, hugging his legs to his chest as the tears streamed down his face. Cautiously, she sat down next to him and embraced him in a hug. She remained that way even as the tears began to fade from the boy's face. Luna stared at him and waited to speak until he had stopped completely.

"How about being a girl for a bit?" she asked.

"..." Harry gaped like a fish for a bit, "Sorry, wait, what?"

"I suggested you try being a girl for a bit," Luna repeated, "I can tell you why." Harry nodded an affirmation, _she might have noticed,_ he thought to himself as she waited a few moments before continuing.

"To start off, you've always been a bit more reactive in general regarding your temper, but you seem to control it when you can. I saw what you did to Flint in your sixth year," she nodded, her earrings bobbing as she did, along with her hair, "Honestly, it's a more feminine mindset to curse or destroy with barbs and insults before hitting, boys tend to go for the physical reactions instantly. So that, in itself, would be fairly normal. The other aspect is that, as an heir to two pureblooded houses, you're expected to do certain things as a boy. While girls have a different weight, they have less eyes on them in regards to such matters. In fact, despite what many say, I'd actually surmise that pureblood women are generally disadvantaged publicly. Rita Skeeter is a half-blood, Hermione is a muggleborn, Professor McGonagall is actually a half-blood like yourself, and so on. Comparatively, they each are more often seen publicly, are well known, or have been in the news more than any pureblood women have been in their lifetimes. But, I believe the most important is that you will be able to express yourself more easily," Luna hummed lightly, "though I suppose that's based on whether or not you keep your name or just go with pretending to be someone new."

"Probably someone new," Harry muttered and smiled at Luna, "though it's not really possible, thanks for trying."

Luna tilted her head and gave him a look, "Sure it is, you're a Metamorphagus."

Harry stared, blinked, and then stared again, "What? No I'm not, I've never done anything like what Tonks did, I can't do that."

Luna shook her head, "No, you haven't, but yes you can. Just now, your face changed and all evidence that you had been crying vanished, I've seen your hair shimmer a dark red when you're mad, and when you play Quidditch you sometimes become smaller. Even so, while all of that could easily be your magic, your hair was rapidly flying between white and blue. It's really quite obvious."

The look on Harry's face was one of pure shock and disbelief, and when he looked in the window his hair was indeed a different color, shifting between yellow and white like a flickering bulb. He blinked and gaped at Luna, then looked again. Luna gave him a brilliant smile through her reflection, and Harry watched his hair switch back to black. "Harry?"

"I'm...I...This is impossible, I can't be even more of a freak than what they said I was…" Harry muttered quietly, and Luna caught the statement. After looking at him with a tilted head, she decided it was best to pretend she hadn't heard it. Harry finally looked at the Ravenclaw, "Yes, Luna?"

"If you want to become a girl, perhaps some practice would help," the blonde smiled at him. Reaching into her book bag, noticeably deeper than it should have been, she finally removed a book from it. "Study these pictures on these pages," she pointed to a picture of a young girl and then down the line at the other various figures.

"What about…" he gestured between his legs. As much as he was hopping aboard, he still felt quite nervous.

"As I've noticed from my studies, Metamorphs do not need to be intimately familiar with something they are adding to their body, and it applies for getting rid of it. So long as you know the what, and have your appearance in your head, you'll be fine," Harry gave her a suspicious squint. She actually rolled her eyes, "Ignore the nargles, they're part of the problem. Once you change, I'll give one of my dirigible plum necklaces. They and the wrackspurts hate them."

Harry stifled his laughter and gave her a smile, "Ok." And so, the boy began to concrete, closing his eyes and scrunching his forehead. After a few moments, he began to shrink slightly as his hair lengthed and turned a deep red. His body softened and took on the familiar shapes of the fairer sex, though his breasts were fairly small. _A b-cup,_ Luna told her mind. By the time he was done, he was a bit shorter than Luna, As his baggy clothes sagged on his body, he looked up at Luna. "...It worked?"

Luna gave him a bright grin, "It did!" She paused and looked at him, notably resisting the urge to squee, she spoke again, "Harry, do you mind if I hug you?"

"What? Why? I mean I suppose, but why did you-" he was cut off as the blonde girl embraced him with an almost tackling force, as she squeezed and began to rival Hermione's hugs, she spoke.

"You're adorable!" she said elatedly.

"Stop it! I need to change back before someone comes by!" Luna just rolled her eyes.

"No, you need to turn into Draco and let him know the switch can stop," Luna practically ordered. Harry stared at her, only before she suddenly stood up, "No, wait, you're staying like this! Let's go tell him!"

Harry's breath was knocked out him in shock, this was definitely not the Luna he knew or even expected. He was dragged along behind her as she practically blew into the library.

 _A Few Hours Later_

 _The Great Hall_

Harry had already managed to return to being himself and was currently seated next to Hermione Jean Granger and Ronald Billius Weasley idly chatting quietly. The two hadn't yet commented on the quiet nature of Harry currently showing itself in the conversation. As they spoke, Ginny had made herself over and tapped Harry on the shoulder. "You owe me an apology."

Harry blinked, "Sorry, what?"

"You ditched me, at a wedding no less, after breaking up with me," the ginger haired girl responded, "It was rude, and you owe me an apology. You didn't think I could take care of myself, not only that but you didn't contact me for months."

"Er…" Harry responded.

"I'm not a little girl, Harry. You are the one at fault, not me," she practically hissed. The Great Hall was dead silent, and all heads were turned towards the two. Ginny went to speak again but was interrupted by the platinum blonde Draco.

"He doesn't owe you shit, weasel," the boy spat, getting a shocked look from over half the hall. "Little girl or not, Potter was attempting to protect you and your family from _dying_ , for Merlin's sake. Did you want to die? Or have your family die? Pull your head out of your arse."

A ravenclaw boy nodded, "I have to agree, Gryffindor or not, most of us did and have done the same. Potter was more at risk than anyone, so was your brother. Asking her-" the boy coughed, "him to apologize for basically saving your entire family is more retarded than a drunk squirrel."

Hermione spoke up, "I honestly agree."

Ginny gaped and looked at Ron, "Don't get me wrong, it was a rude thing to do, but that doesn't mean he was wrong, Gin."

Ginny looked positively furious as she stormed out of the hall which quickly resumed the typical chatter as they ate. Luna in particular gave the Ravenclaw boy a wide smile before digging into her pudding. Harry was completely shocked and looked at his friend, "Thanks…" he muttered.

"Sister or not, you're my best mate. Ginny's been pretty out of line, and while I think it'd be nice being brother-in-laws, I'd rather not have either of you end up with a bad match," Ron answered, getting another gaping look from almost everyone at the table.

"Ron, that was incredibly mature…" Hermione said.

"What? It's true," he responded before digging into the massive plate of food in front of him.

Harry turned towards Draco and mouthed a 'Thank you', to which Draco responded with a nod. Harry looked towards the Ravenclaw table and the boy met his eyes with a wink. 'After dinner' he mouthed to the Gryffindor. Then, the boy seemed to strike up a conversation with Luna.

Dinner finished quite quickly after that and Harry waited outside the doors for Luna and the boy. After most of the hall had cleared, the two appeared shortly after and Luna grabbed Harry's hand, practically dragging him in dead silence to the seventh floor as the boy followed behind. The doors to the Room of Requirement opened shortly after Luna approached and they moved inside.

A rather quaint and homely room, much like the Gryffindor commons, greeted them along one Blaise Zabini. Luna sat Harry down in one of the chairs as she and the two boys took a seat. After a moment of silence, the Ravenclaw boy spoke. "No need to thank me, Potter, that ex of yours was being out of line."

Zabini nodded, "He's right, but we're here for something else."

"Er, what?" Harry answered in shock.

"Do what we had you do, earlier today," Luna answered. Harry paled and looked nervously at the two boys, "it's perfectly fine Harry, they know and I trust them."

Harry's formed quickly began shifting and left the petite girl in his place, looking just as nervous as before. Luna turned to the unnamed boy and he nodded, "You were right Lovegood, she's definitely not comfortable being male."

"I'm sorry?" Harry whispered in shock.

"Don't be," the boy answered, "in fact, I'm not surprised. Though, you two were wrong about one thing. She's not necessarily a metamorph."

"What?" Luna blinked, practically mimicking Harry.

Zabini nodded, "It's not that easy to tell the difference, but I'm certain."

"About what?" Harry was bewildered, two boys from other houses were sitting here not calling him a freak. Zabini was the bigger surprise, though he hadn't expected acceptance from someone in Ravenclaw besides Luna. The two boys looked at each other and nodded.

Zabini's form began shifting quickly and left a dark-haired girl in his place, similar to himself. She grimaced a bit and began shifting back. Harry's shock was only increased as the Ravenclaw boy shifted, his hair changing from a dirty blonde to a black darker than his own hair had been. "Unlike metamorphs," the girl started, "People like the three of us are not registered with the Ministry, primarily because our abilities are limited to this. You can be a metamorph and like us, a metamorph, or just like us. The proper term comes from Greece, though the norse term is also used. _Argr_ or _Tiresia_ , it basically means a magical who can shift between the genders."

Harry blinked, "I've never heard of that…"

"It's not a common occurrence, nor do people like us make it known," she answered, "In all honestly, the three or possibly four of us are the likely the only ones in the 'U.K' as the Muggles call it. That aside, we typically pick the gender we prefer the most. I myself prefer being female, though for a few reasons I tend to attend school as a male. Zabini prefers being male."

"I'm… like you?" Harry asked, still staring at the girl in shock.

"Yes, and Luna here might be as well," she answered.

"Really?" Luna looked rather excited.

"Most likely," she answered.

Harry stared between the three before his head suddenly lolled back and he promptly passed out. The ravenclaw tisked before turning to Luna, "You're certain she wants to be a female?"

Luna nodded, "The wrackspurts positively love Harry, but right now they are staying away."

"Alright," the girl looked at Zabini, "shall we?"

"She might hate us when we're done, Faelin," Blaise answered, "but it's for the best. Have you figured out everything?"

"Yes," the mischievous grin on the girl's face made him shudder, " _Black_ here will be attending her seventh year of Hogwarts starting next week."

Blaise blinked, "Merlin, how fast do you move?"

"As the muggles say, _the early bird gets the worm_."


End file.
